WILSON, NC – Defending NCAA D-II National Champion Barton blitzed Coker 70-51 Thursday night with a strong second-half showing in Conference Carolinas men’s basketball action.

The Bulldogs and Coker were tied 31-31 at intermission, but Barton blasted past the Cobras by outscoring them 39-20 in the second 20 minutes.

Barton is 13-6 overall and 9-3 in the league while Coker left at 5-13, 3-8. The Bulldogs host Erskine at 7:30 Saturday night in Wilson Gym.

Junior guard Errol Frails paced Barton with 14 points and freshman point guard Greg Mammel scored 13, including 12 in the second half. Sophomore forward Eddie Kershaw added 10 points, as did sophomore forward L.J. Dunn, who also snared a game-high 10 rebounds.

For Coker, guard J.C. Hafner had 12 points and Josh Poston netted 11.

The Bulldogs put the clamps on Coker in the second half defensively, evidenced by 16.7-percent shooting (5-of-30) by the visitors after the break. Barton also outrebounded the Cobras 42-37.

For the game, Coker was 16-of-58 for 27.6 percent while Barton finished 24-of-55 for 43.6 percent.

The first half featured eight ties and four lead changes, but Barton got a field goal from Dunn and back-to-back 3-pointers by Mammel to open the second half and never looked back.